Closes the hospital, former commandery of the Knights Templar, French Heritage monument to Coulommiers

Templiers were established has Coulommiers, at the beginning of XIIe century. Thibault, count de Champagne, gave them various goods, and inter alia the castle of Montbillard or Monlbaillard, locates at the top of the mountain in the north of the city. It is claimed that this fortress existed under the kings of the second race; that it was destroyed, and that a barn has it remplacee. When the order of Templiers was destroyed, it is known that the knights of Malta heriterent of a portion of their fields: this one took the name of hospital, which it always has preserves since. The commandery was then transferee with House-New which is only one firm today.

Before the revolution, Coulommiers was the seat of an election, a subdelegation, a baillage which ressortissait by no means at the Parliament of Paris, of a control particuliere of water and drills, and of a commandery of Malta (ndw: At the beginning of XIVe century (1311), the pope abolishes the order of Templiers and gave their goods to the hospital knights of Saint-Jean-of-Jerusalem. since call knights of Malta), one of the four who existed in the diocese of Meaux; it is today the chief town of a district of sub-prefecture, of a chief town of canton, the seat of a county court, a lieutenancy and a gendarmerie squad.

Source: Topographic, political, physical history and statistics of the department of etc per E H Felix Pascal 1936.

Decoration and ornamentation

Although it serf of barn has fodder since more than one century, the vault of the Hospital is in an excellent state of conservation. It was entirely painted, and this system of decoration, of which it is possible to still note elegant simplicity and the perfect harmony, seems to me excellent model has to offer for the restoration of our rural churches of XIIIe century. Better undoubtedly this sobriety is worth, harmonizes some with the weak resources of the factories, that ashamed multicoloured paintings inflict of all shares to the provincial churches by the hordes, unceasingly reappearing, of the plasterers Piedmontese and lombards.

All this decoration is made with softening, process which is equipped with a sufficient solidity when it is bracket under good conditions.

The districts of the vaults are painted in white with partitions of brown red (pl. v).

The veins, has their higher end close to the keystone, are decorees, over a width of 0m, 6o, of a ribbon rolls up or alternate eunuch flute, red and blue, and borders of a white net; the acute edge between the two tori of the vein is painted in green; the throat in red and the moulding in blue. From this ribbon to the console, the acute edge becomes red; it is the same of the edge of the arc beam, but this one does not have a ribbon at the top.

I have draw the most complete console, it preserves obvious traces of colouring in red, blue and yellow. I have remark no trace of gilding.

All the vertical walls are decorate with partitions. I have note two times.

Oldest is a kind of fresco on a mortar of lime and of clay bricks, which one finds on the same territory of the Hospital; it is of a yellow tone sinks a little made green, with partitions in white. These partitions are broad from 0m, 35 and tops of 0m, 13.

Most recent is a lime ocree paint with partitions in brown red. The partitions are much larger: 0m, 6o on 0m, 24.

The windows are bordered of a broad net of brown red of 0m, 2o broad, which forms archivolt and framing. the splaying of the windows preserves partitions in brown red on white zone.

Such is this ornamentation, allowed the smallest purses and easy in the places most deprived of intelligent workmen.

General sight of the site

The agricultural farm buildings are many and vast, and were not modify outside since the suppression about Malta. The northern pinion of the one of them is supported by two buttresses of XIIIe century. The building which was used for the dwelling of the knights occupies dimensions it Eastern of a large rectangular court; its construction dates from XVIe century. There is only one window with warhead in accodance, but one sees several bays with mullions in cross and mouldings of XVIe century. The screw of the staircase is pratiquee in a projecting tower on the Western frontage: this tower is square since the ground until the height of five bills of quantities and becomes octogonal has this height. The roof east supports by corbels or modillons without character; the base of the tower is out of sandstone; the upper part is built with cords of bricks and stony beds alternate meuliere, about unknown system of construction in this part of the Brie, or the brick, of an high price, is seldom employed. The interior of this building is deprived of any character of architecture.

Under a barn placee at the opposite end of the court, one still finds the beautiful caveaux one of a very-regular construction; one is barrel vault; the other, squares, has semi-circular vaults carried in the center by a column squat and without base, but equipped with a capital whose round basket is surmontee, for the angles of the trencher, of hooks in the shape of heads of imagination which go back obviously to the beginning of. XIIIe century.

The Hospital, as in the majority of the monuments of feudal times, the local tradition ensures that an underground conduit established a communication between the dwelling of Templiers and the place of the Walk of Coulommiers. The gloses do not miss, one thinks it well, but no trace comes to support the popular belief. Initially, the difference in level between the plate of the Hospital and ground of the east city of at least 80 bills of quantities; then, the distance is not less of two kilometers; at most could one admit that an exit emerged in the countryside with the first declivities of the hill. However the current owner of the farm has me affirms that it had penetrates rather front in this conduit, but that it had not been able to supplement the recognition, because the lights die out has certain depth without one being able to revive them. At the time of an epizooty which reigned in the farm, there is about thirty years, the corpses of the animals were thrown in great number in this vault, whose opening was immediately filled with ground.

Another tale, which hardly any more does not find the credulous ones, but which can like the collectors of legends, fact of this underground the theatre of dramas horripilants. According to the storytellers of the close hamlets, the door of this passage was stone, narrow, and opened in the church only second Sunday before Easter. Great indulgences were accordees with the daring one which, that day, dared to undertake the voyage, outward journey and return, of the Hospital at the city; but it was necessary that this voyage was accomplished throughout reading of the Gospel of Passion. If it were of return only after the completion of the holy text, the stone door turned on its hinges with the speed of the flash, and was closed again irrevocably on the imprudent one, which disappeared for always. Under wouldn't the absurdity of this tale, be there a memory of cruelties, etc, imputees in Templiers?

The vault of the Hospital is parallel to built the southernmost side of the principal residence; the apse is turned towards the East of equinox. This church presents an elegant specimen of the monastic architecture to XIIIe century: it is a right-angled of 21m, 20 length, of 6m, 72 of width, in work, and high parallelogram under the vault of 11 bills of quantities. The building is divided in four about equal spans and enlightened of each dimension by four high ogival windows; the apse square and is lit by three windows or ogival triplet.

The low parts of the walls and the buttresses, in all their height, are built out of sandstone, as are in this region almost all the religious buildings of the Middle Ages; the high parts are out of stone meuliere with chains of gressery and stones of size. The frame is beautiful and solid; in the center, one finds the fulcrums of an arrow destroyed after the revolution of 1789.

The arcs beams and the veins of the vaults are compose of two tori with acute edge and fall down on consoles having trenchers has four dimension (half of an octagone). The consoles of the four angles of the vault represent human heads; the others are terminees by sheets has hooks and of the indigenous flowers. These consoles, very firmly taillees, are out of stone of Vareddes, close to Meaux.

The main entrance of the vault, in the west, was precedee of a square room, with groined vaults in clotheshanger flattens, falling down on six columns and six consoles. The vault has 3m, 2o height. Two intact capitals and two others mutilate still exist: they belong at the beginning of XIIIe century. A turret, containing a staircase out of screw, flanks the northern angle of this room, become a cattle shed, and which one still names the chapter room.

The vault is completely brick carrelee of the country, but, has 4 bills of quantities approximately in front of the furnace bridge, which disappeared, at one time saw still two tomb stones of different times.

One represents a knight. Taken in exchange of a stone of sink, by a stone mason of Coulommiers, it was sciee into two and reduced a thickness of 0m, o5 has, and was to be employed has domestic uses. On my authorities, the workman wanted not to destroy it well; but it required for this conservation a sum of thirty francs, that the municipal council of Coulommiers refused clearly. I have to acquire it and to give it has one of my friends, Mr. Hermann-Leon, artist of the imperial theatre of the Op3era Comique, which preciously preserves it in its villa of Batignolles. This flagstone is very-rough, glaze of a crust hard and rough impossible has to remove.

The knight is registered in a trefoil ogival arcade, its hands are united on its chest and its feet rest on a dog seen of profile. It is vetu of a dress of meshs and a long coat; its sword hangs at the left side of its belt. Its hairstyle would deserve a study particuliere; it seems me to guess a kind of cap or barette monacale of or leave the hair roll and surrounding the nape of the neck. The field around the character east sows of eight flowers of lily, and in the higher corners of the warhead are two escutcheons carrying a cross. The inscription entiere escaped has my investigations; however I desperate step to supplement it. One only reads:

This tomb, which dates obviously from XIIIe century, carries following dimensions: length, 1m, 85; width with the head, 0m, 98; width with the feet, 0m, 82.

Other tomb stone, long of 1m, 8o, broad by the top from 1m, 05 and by the bottom of 0m, 7o, date of XVe century. A cross fleuronnee with its pole occupies all its length; it is gravee in relief with a remarkable precision. Under the arms of the cross two similar escutcheons are seen has those announce on the preceding flagstone; but here the districts of the ECU or cantons carry crawling lions, I believe. The inscription, in Gothic characters, is very readable, except for the line of the lower part, who is brisee and rough:

Cy gist humble monk as a God, Bold Simon brother co.mendor of ceans. of Bibertost and temple of Passi which lon time remained in Grind and was soubs prior of leglise conventual place which trespassa lan of gracc millet cccc. xx of the month of etc. Request God for etc. trespassez. Nud. revermr iluc.

I would not dare to certify the reading of these last three words. The name of the month and the day of the month day of this month were never serious. Biberlost, today Biberleult, of which it is question here, is a firm neighbor of the commandery of House-New and who depended on it. I hoped to save this tomb as easily as the first; but a new tenant of the farm of the Hospital has imagines to make the hearth of the chimney of it and to bury it half under a partition has.

Source: Bulletin of the Committee of the language, the history and arts of France in 1856.

(Closes the hospital, former commandery of the Knights Templar, coulommiers)

Structural information

Closes the hospital, former commandery of the Knights Templar, « Closes the hospital, former commandery of the Knights Templar » is a construction of the city of Coulommiers (France, Seine et marne). Closes the hospital, former commandery of the Knights Templar, French Heritage monument to Coulommierscoulommiers, seine et marne

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